


Teamwork

by Pookie02



Category: Persona 3, Persona 4, Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth, Persona Series
Genre: F/F, F/M, I'm not putting twenty character tags
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-06-26
Updated: 2016-07-10
Packaged: 2018-07-18 10:22:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,786
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7311079
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pookie02/pseuds/Pookie02
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The events of Persona Q, focusing on interactions between both teams all lead by the female protagonist of Persona 3.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. This is fine

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! - so I guess I'll just throw a few things out here to get started:
> 
> I've got a lot of writing on my plate, all of it long-winded projects that will take a very long time to finish. In the meantime, I've found I miss posting online in general (I used to be a regular at fanfiction.net). 
> 
> I also had thought about doing a comic of this scenario, but you know what's a lot easier for me? Writing. So this is going to be my slow burn for fun project between everything else. These will be done without my in-house editor, but I'm working on self-editing as best I can these days anyway (my poor editor's a busy baby).
> 
> Well anyway, on to the more important-for-this-story information: 
> 
> This will be loosely covering PQ's plot, but with a focus on character interactions. Also, things won't be 1:1 the same as how it goes in PQ. This will be, in a large part, due to the fact that I'll be replacing the male P3 protag with the female one. 
> 
> I'm also going to be toning down the characters to make them a bit more like their original versions. The caricature nature of PQ's writing is fine, but I really like how everyone acted in their respective games more.
> 
> Whuf, that's about it. I hope you enjoy~

"So, uh," Junpei scratched at his chin, "Anyone else think it's kinda weird about Minako?"

"What about her?" Yukari asked, glancing up from the tending to her bow.

"Just... you know, the whole disappearing into some magic door none of us can go into thing." Junpei looked around as the rest of SEES went about their normal warm up routines in Tartarus' entryway. For the most part, that meant sitting on the entrance stairs or making sure weapons were ready. For Akihiko in particular, that meant more exercise than Junpei usually got in a week.

"Junpei, we're in a tower that pops out of our school every night at midnight," Yukari's voice was flat as she went back to looking over her bowstring. "I don't know when you were planning on things being normal."

"They will be when we've finished our mission," Mitsuru chimed in. 

Yukari held out a hand at Mitsuru, taking it as an agreement. Junpei sighed, giving up.

"My ears keep popping," Ken said with a huff from his perch on the stairs. He shook his head a bit to the side with a grimace.

"It's probably from the storm," Shinjiro spoke up, then reached up to fidget with his hat before adding, "Barometer's messed up still."

"OH!" a cry came from the side of the entrance. 

Akihiko had snapped up to a standing position from his pushups in reaction, "Fuuka? Are you okay?" 

"Y-yeah, I just saw a very big... spider?"

They both looked at their feet but didn't seem to find anything. Fuuka shook her head. "Sorry, I must have imagined it."

"It's fine," the senior said. He was still looking around a bit, then shrugged. 

Koromaru started barking a beat later, he shook his head like Ken had, then barked again.

"Koromaru says his ear also feels strange," Aigis translated.

"Why is all this happening at once?" Yukari asked, standing up from her spot on the stairs. "Is... something happening?" Her question seemed to make the rest of the group tense as well.

"Fuuka," Mitsuru started. "Call Lucia and-"

The lights suddenly went out, silencing the girl. There was a weird, loud rushing noise, then Junpei felt like he'd just landed from jumping. Looking around wildly, he found he was in a room covered in blue drapes and furniture. 

The rest of SEES was around him, but now he found Minako was standing by a blue table with two people Junpei didn't recognize. 

"Uh?" Minako looked just as surprised as the rest of the group. "How did you-"

Junpei then noticed the room hadn't been a room, instead a huge elevator. And he realized it just as it stopped moving. The sudden lack of motion dropped nearly everyone to the ground.

"What's happening?" he heard Minako cry.

"I do not know," a flustered voice that had to have come from the tall guy she'd been talking with said. "This is very strange."

Junpei noticed Yukari next to him, then blurted out, "This feels like right before a rollercoaster starts going down."

"Why would you say that?!" she shot back. It looked like she'd been about to holler something else at him, but then the elevator started falling.

A chorus of screams filled the room, very much joined by Junpei's. Just as he started to think he was going to lose his voice from screeching, there was a huge crashing sound and then nothing.

  


*.*.* 

  


The sound of Shinji letting out a loud, particularly filthy curse was the first thing Akihiko was aware of. Picking himself off the ground, he found the side he'd fallen onto hurt, but nothing more than soreness. 

The disorientation faded a moment later, and the boxer started remembering what had happened. He glanced around for to see if the others were okay, and was relieved to find just about everyone was back on their feet as well. The area was dark, but there didn't seem to be any debris from the room they had been in.

"I thought we'd talked about cursing in front of Amada?" Mitsuru grumbled as she tested the steadiness of her legs.

"Someone cover his ears," Minako said, sounding a little shaky.

There was a pause, then Fuuka moved forward and did as she asked. Ken looked annoyed but didn't try to get free.

Minako sucked in a breath, let it out, then sucked in another, then bellowed out a similar sentiment to what Shinji had said. Shaking her head after, she looked a little calmer. "You can let him go, Fuuka."

"I heard it anyway," the boy huffed as he was released.

"Hey, there's a door over here," Junpei spoke up, then started opening it without further prompting. 

Akihiko rushed over to back him up in case there was trouble. But instead of shadows, they found the door lead to a hallway of what looked like a school. There were crowds of people wandering around stalls and stations that had been crudely built along the walls.

"It looks like a culture festival," Yukari said from behind, peeking between them. "Where are we?"

"We should try to determine that," Mitsuru said, and Akihiko stepped back so she could see better. 

"It looks like a normal high school," the boxer offered. The uniforms the students were wearing looked familiar, but he couldn't place the-

"Yasogami High!" Minako cried. Akihiko looked back to find their field leader hopping up and down to see past the rest that had crowded at the door. "In Inaba! I was here for my volleyball conference last month!"

"So we were transported to another school," Akihiko said, glancing to Mitsuru.

"It was midnight when we were in Port Island," she added, "It's clearly day here." She glanced at the others, "We should gather information."

Akihiko nodded, then glanced over to see if their field leader had any thoughts on how they should go. Minako looked like she'd been about to speak, but the woman in blue who had been in the elevator spoke up before she could.

"While your friends are doing that, would you come back with us to check on the Velvet Room?"

Minako nodded, then looked back at the others, to Mitsuru in particular, "Meet back here once you guys find anything," She frowned out at the crowd milling around the halls. "Buddy up; I've got a bad feeling."

"Are you going to be okay?" Akihiko spoke up, glancing at the two strangers she was leaving with.

The girl laughed, then started a bit, "Oh, yeah. This is Elizabeth," she held out her hand to the woman. "And Theo, her brother," her hand gestured toward the tall man in blue. "They help run the Velvet Room."

"It is a pleasure to meet you," Theo said, bowing.

"We shouldn't dally long," Elizabeth added in.

Minako glanced back at Akihiko, "I'll be back soon. Don't worry about me when I'm with these two."

Akihiko nodded; he trusted her judgment, but it felt strange anyway.

  


*.*.* 

  


"Hey!" Junpei waved a hand out at a group of boys that looked his age. They were standing around a shooting gallery, and most looked up when he shouted.

"You guys are from this school, right?"

"Yeah," one boy nodded.

"This is going to sound weird, but what day is it? Like the date?" 

Junpei had expected the boys to give him strange looks, and to be honest, they did. But instead of confusion, it was blank stares that met him. No one spoke at first, and Junpei had been about to try again when one of the other boys finally spoke.

"This culture fair is the best!" the others nodded, then the group turned back for the gallery.

"Wuh..?" Junpei stared for a moment.

"This is really creepy," Yukari said from behind, startling him bad enough to make him jump.

"Jeez! Calm down," she shook her head. "They gave you a weird answer too, right?"

Junpei, who was holding his hand over his still-thumping heart, nodded. "Same for you?"

"I asked a girl what day the festival ended and she told me the snack bar was always open," Yukari said, then let out a sigh. "I hope the others are doing better than this."

  


*.*.* 

  


"Theo, can you give it a try?" Minako asked, after her attempt to open the locked doors before her proved useless. 

The tall man dutifully walked up, then reached for the door's handle and pulled. His face pulled into a tiny grimace, and the chains on the door creaked, but nothing else came of it. There were two of these heavily chained doors, which had appeared in the Velvet Room after the crash. Besides them, there wasn't much left to the room the way it had looked before.

"Disappointing, brother," Elizabeth sighed from Minako's side.

Theo took a step back after letting go and turned a flustered look first to his sister, then to Minako. "I apologize for my failure."

The girl started to tell him he hadn't failed, but Elizabeth spoke before she could. "If you're done embarrassing the family, perhaps we should go back and check on the others."

Minako nodded, glancing around the Velvet Room again. It looked like it had smashed to the ground and parts that had flown apart kept hovering. Normally the room felt calming, she didn't know if it was this bizarre situation or Igor's absence that made it suddenly less welcome.

Back the door she followed Elizabeth and Theo, hoping the others had been having better luck.

  


*.*.* 

  


There was an arm wrestling table set up on the second floor. Akihiko knew this wasn't really the time for that, but he glanced around the people who were around the area. No one was using the table, but the competitors were probably close by. If the situation SEES was in wasn't too dire, maybe he'd stop by again later...

"Let's see if we can get out," Shinji said, breaking Akihiko out of his thoughts. He looked at the table, then gave the boxer an exasperated look.

"You think we can't leave?" Akihiko asked before Shinji got any ideas of where his mind had been going.

"No clue, but let's find out," the boy said with a shrug. "We may have to find our way home anyway."

The two made for the first floor and left the building by the main entrance. The school's gates were open and it was sunny out. They probably shouldn't wander too far from the school until the others-

"What the hell?" Shinji hissed. They were back in the building. 

Akihiko shook his head, looking around. He was in the school's doorway again. If Shinjiro hadn't been there, he would have thought he'd imagined the whole thing. 

Still confused, he tried back for the gate again. Just as soon as he passed through it, he was back in the building. The disorientation was jarring. 

Once he'd thrown off the strange feeling, he saw Shinji climbing the fence a few feet from the gate. He hopped over the edge, and Akihiko moved up to shout at him.

"Did it work?"

"No," came from behind. Shinji looked a little flustered now.

"So we are trapped in here," Akihiko sighed. He hoped the others had found less worrying information.

  


*.*.* 

  


Minako looked over her team. Their information gathering had not brought good news. "So," she started to recap, "The Velvet Room is busted, we can't leave, the people here aren't real or are at least not reacting realistically. Is that everything?" 

"Someone said the snack bar was open all day," Yukari said flatly.

"Well great; we can eat takoyaki for all eternity," the girl sighed. She turned towards Elizabeth and Theo, "Are we trapped here?"

"This occurrence happened while you were all in the Velvet Room," Elizabeth answered. "Things do not happen there unless it's for a reason."

"So there's a purpose to our being here? Something we need to do?" Mitsuru asked.

"That's right," Theo nodded.

"So we're only sort of trapped," Minako sighed.

"That is correct," Elizabeth said with a nod.


	2. Introductory

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> SEES starts getting a feel for the Labyrinth, along with help

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was going to jump around with this story, but it feels better to cover the starting situation before we get into the good stuff. This one was kind of a shorty, but we must forge on. I also have to post this quick before the thunderstorm looming its way here finds me~

A group of students came rushing through the hallway, somewhat disrupting the calm buzz of the festival. They stood out in the crowd by the grim sense of purpose they gave off, but also from their attire; they had different uniforms than the Yasogami High School students who normally walked the hallways. 

They all stopped in front of the display entitled "You in Wonderland," then started talking amongst themselves. After what appeared to be some debate, three of them went inside.

It was at that point Zen noticed they all had weapons, except the gray-haired boy who had gone in the display. He placed a hand on Rei's shoulder.

"Stay close, there may be trouble," he said to her quietly.

The girl started, then looked up at him with a mouth full of donut, "Hrmph!?"

"Stay behind me," he had decided it was best to confront these people. So he marched over, hand already on his crossbow.

"Who are you?" he asked once he reached the group. They all turned, some looking startled, some looking wary.

"We are looking for a way out of here," one girl with red curls answered. Her arms crossed over her chest. "Who are you?"

"We are also searching for an exit," Zen answered. He supposed it was wise of the girl to not answer him, these people might be dangerous and giving their names-

"I'm Rei and he's Zen!" Rei spoke up. "You're leaving? I want to leave too."

The redhead's arms slipped down, and she looked far less suspicious. Rei did that have affect on people. "Are you from this school?" she asked.

"Umm..." Rei hesitated, then looked up at Zen.

"We aren't sure," he answered for her. "We have no memories."

"It's really neat in there!" a voice proclaimed from the display's entryway. "Full of shadows but very... " the speaker, a girl with a ponytail and pins in her hair trailed off once she noticed Zen and Rei. The other students around her parted so she could get up to the redhead, flanked by the two boys who had gone in the display with her.

"Made some friends?" she asked the redhead.

"I'm Rei and he's Zen!" Rei answered for everyone again. "We're going to get out of here together!"

"You're trapped here too?" the gray-haired boy asked.

"Yes, and they seem to have no memories of how they got here," the redhead added.

The newer girl, stuck her hands to her hips, looking worried, "No memories? Well if that's the case, we should help each other get out of here."

"Are you sure about that?" the other boy at her side with a cap on his head asked. 

"If they lost their memories because they were here too long, we really should take any advantage we can to get out of here before it happens to us," the new girl said.

The boy grimaced, then nodded.

  


*.*.* 

  
The inside of the Labyrinth was covered in what looked like huge book illustrations that had been cut out and pasted to the walls. It made the whole area look like a collage in dark blue and red with faded cream pages.

Yukari might not have been as interested in the Wonderland theme as Fuuka and Minako, but she couldn't deny how beautiful the labyrinth looked. But as nice as it looked, especially different considering how weird and creepy the dark hour was, there were still shadows everywhere.

So far it had been nothing by mayas, which were easy enough to take care of. She got the feeling Akihiko in particular was unimpressed with the shadows they had been facing. Minako seemed pretty pleased though; every turn she took she looked around at all the decorations once the shadows were taken care of. 

This easy area had been good to test out Zen and Rei's abilities at least. They both were powerful, which was interesting since neither used personas. That thought nagged at Yukari, but she had no clue if it meant anything. It wasn't like a lot of things made sense in this situation anyway.

Yukari had been keeping towards the back so far; her bow could reach if there was anything the others didn't take out immediately. So when she turned the next corner, she was surprised to find the group bunched up not far from the turn.

They were staring at an orb that was floating in the air. It was huge and black and white striped, and it was just hovering there.

"What is that thing?" she hissed once she approached the others.

"Fuuka?" Mitsuru said, voice quiet as well.

"It is a shadow," Fuuka's voice answered, sounding worried. The girl was outside the labyrinth using her persona to navigate remotely. "I don't know why it isn't moving."

There was another few moments of silence, which was broken by Minako. "Get it, Junpei," she whispered.

It sounded like she'd been kidding, but the boy puffed out his chest, spun his hat around so it sat on his head backwards and hefted his sword up. Yukari saw Minako pull her evoker from its holster and waited while she watched him go.

He walked up to the orb, then reached up and gave it a nudge with his sword. After first, nothing happened. Junpei turned and shrugged at Minako, who shrugged back.

He wound up to hit it again, but then it moved. Junpei hopped back a step as it rolled in the air revealing its mouth. The thing was pretty much just a ball with mouth now, but then-

"Eagh," Yukari groaned as the shadow's huge tongue appeared; it was so big she couldn't believe it had fit in the thing.

Junpei swung his sword to hit the shadow, but it dodged. Using the momentum if its own roll back, it swung it's huge tongue over. And then it licked Junpei. As it slathered spit all over the front of the boy, he let out a disgusted yelp.

Minako grimaced, letting out a disgusted groan as she brought her evoker to her head. She hesitated a moment, as an almost confused looked played over her face, then she pulling the trigger. Orpheus jumped forward, then clobbered the shadow with its lyre. Penthesilea appeared a moment later as Mitsuru summoned it, blasting the shadow with ice and taking it out.

Junpei stood in the same spot, arms held out in front of him as he dripped spit.

Minako slowly approached him, "You okay?"

"It slimed me," the boy answered, then waved his arms down, making a few huge drips flip off his arms onto the floor.

"Maybe we sure head back for a bit," Mitsuru offered, getting a nod from Minako.

"I feel so funky," Junpei said as they started back.

  


*.*.* 

  
"If you're trying to help us, why are you charging for it?" Shinjiro huffed. The question looked like it flustered Theo, whose hands bunched onto the frilly pink apron his sister had apparently given him.

But before he could come up with a response, Elizabeth answered for him. "Worth must be gauged, or my brother will be woefully unaware of how he may improve. And we may assist you, but we cannot interfere with your goals or decisions."

Shinjiro turned an unbelieving look at Minako, who shrugged. "Rules are rules," 

Theo had offered to make them armor and weapons if they needed it, Elizabeth had offered healing services now that it was clear they were stuck fighting in the labyrinths for a while. The nurse's station had been redecorated to look like a Jack Frost fever dream, and Shinjiro knew better than bringing up how pointless that was. He'd seen the stickers all over Minako's cellphone and heard all about the summer festival doll. 

The girl turned a grin at Elizabeth. "We can haggle you down through, right?"

"Oh certainly," the woman sounded pleased at the suggestion. "Only for my services though, poor Theo would cave in too easily."

Minako didn't argue, which made Shinjiro sigh. He was starting to wonder if Junpei was on to something with how weird she acted with these Velvet Room people. Thought the boy probably didn't have as harsh a review of them once Elizabeth let him use the nurse's station shower a few minutes ago.

"If we're stuck here," Shinjiro addressed both Velvet Room attendants. "We're going to run out of money pretty quickly."

"I would be happy to buy any useful components you find in the labyrinth," Theo offered. "There are things shadows drop that can be very valuable."

"So we'll have plenty of money if we keep fighting shadows," Minako grinned up at Shinjiro. "Akihiko will be pleased."

"Like he needed more of an excuse," the boy shook his head. "Speak of which; when are we going back in?"

"Soon," Minako answered. "I don't want to hang around longer than we need to... Thank you, guys. I'm sure we'll be relying on your services plenty."

Theo gave a little bow, Elizabeth smiled as she answered, "And I'll be happy to see what kind of wounds you receive. For research purposes."

Minako lead Shinjiro out of the workroom Theo had claimed. He gave it a few minutes to make sure they were far enough away before speaking. "What's with those two?" he couldn't help but ask.

"Huh? Oh, well I only have theories, but they're from this side," the girl answered.

"What do you mean by that? The sides thing?"

"You know," she waved her hands a bit. "We're from the normal, human side. Homework and air pollution and taxes. The other side is personas and shadows."

"And the Velvet Room?"

"Right," she nodded. "I think there's a lot more than that, but I've only dealt with it and the people in it." They were nearly back to the hall the Wonderland exhibit had been in where the rest of the group would be waiting, but Minako took an unexpected turn.

"Where are you going?"

"Find that donut booth Rei mentioned earlier," Minako answered. "You're coming too."

"Why?"

"You can help me carry; I'm starving and I'm sure everyone else is. We're gonna have a little snack before we get back to work."

"You'd be better off eating something better than donuts," Shinji sighed, shaking his head.

"Yeah yeah, I know. Protein would keep us full longer," there was a mischievous look up in his direction. "You're starting to sound like Akihiko."

"Shut up," the boy grumbled.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed it! Thanks to all the folks leaving kudos and commenting as well, as it's super appreciated!
> 
> Happy 4th of July weekend to any Americans reading this, please be safe!


	3. The Wild Card?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mitsuru has an exasperating day

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Getting through the nuts and bolts of the setting can be a little meh, but we're getting there~

Ken was tired. He was also hungry. SEES had been in the Wonderland labyrinth for what felt like at least half a day. He actually couldn't tell how long it had been; no one's phones worked. He'd caught Shinjiro looking at a pocket watch he'd pulled out of his coat, shake his head and put it back. That probably meant it wasn't working either.

The boy had to force himself to stop thinking about Shinjiro for now. He had to focus. Most of the others were starting to look tired as well, but Ken still refused to complain. Doing so would be childish and -

"Does anyone have any food?" Junpei said, voice in a whine. There wasn't any answer, save maybe a few soft groans.

"No gorp?" Minako asked, then Junpei let out a loud snort and started laughing. Ken still hadn't figured out what that joke was about. Shaking his head, he continued walking with the rest of the group. 

The shadows they had fought in this area hadn't been too tough so far. The only real worry were the F.O.E.s. Every time they got near one of the special shadows, Fuuka immediately warned them away. Minako looked like she was getting frustrated with having to work the group around them.

Their field leader had been trying to keep everyone's spirits up, but even she was starting to fade. She had suggested they try to get as much done as possible to get out, something Mitsuru had agreed with. The quicker they got through the labyrinth, the quicker they could go home. But now it was starting to look like this situation couldn't be solved in one or two long excursions.

Ken was walking along in the middle of the others with Koromaru at his side. He liked where he was; he could hear what everyone else was talking about and not have to think of something to add. It was sometimes intimidating to join a conversation with everyone else.

"Where else are they going to go with it?" Minako's voice had risen, sounding a little irritated. The pace had slowed to a stop, and Ken looked over to find the girl writing in the notebook she'd been making a map in. Junpei was standing next to her, shaking his head.

"Well it's not like there wouldn't be a mess to clean up," he offered.

Minako tapped her pen on the book, then shook her head. "I say they should just wipe the slate clean and try something new. They kind of did that once and it worked fine."

"They can't do it like that again. You want a reboot?"

"No," Minako practically hissed. "Just... something new. Maybe keep the co-op, that was fun."

"What are you guys talking about?" Yukari asked. She was a few steps behind Ken, and glancing back he found her looking at Junpei and Minako.

"Huh?" Minako looked back at her. "Oh, uh..."

"Video games," Junpei filled in, shrugging. "Serious business."

"I should have known," Yukari sighed.

"You are paying attention to the labyrinth, yes?" Mitsuru asked from her side.

"Yes, ma'am," Minako said, giving the notebook in her hands a little wiggle. "Fuuka's got us covered for shadows, too."

"Still," the redhead shook her head. "You should keep your mind on the labyrinth."

Minako looked like she'd been about to argue, but she sighed and nodded. "Yeah. You're right."

She gave a tight lipped grin to Junpei, then turned back and started leading the group along again. There was a few groans from the people in front after they turned another corner. Ken had to lean to the side past Akihiko to see what the problem was.

They were at a dead end.

Minako groaned, "All right, let's take a quick break. I think we're all starting to hit our limit for now. And we're boxed in, nothing can sneak up on us."

Going by how most of the group flopped to the ground to sit, no one was going to complain. Ken sat next to Koromaru and started petting him. The dog's tail started wagging rapidly as he rubbed both of his sides.

"Hey guys, how are you holding up?" Ken heard Minako ask Zen and Rei. He watched with idle curiosity; he was still not sure what to make of those two yet.

"I'm doing good!" Rei said, then took a bite out of a corndog. Ken couldn't help but wonder where it had come from. He heard his stomach rumble quietly at the thought of a snack.

"Good," Minako nodded. She turned a smile to Zen, who was standing with his crossbow still in hand. "You can relax for a little while, Zen. We-"

Zen's crossbow came up, pointed at Minako. The girl took a step back, hands coming up defensively. Ken surged to his feet, along with just about everyone else who had been looking that way.

"You are suggesting I stop protecting Rei?" Zen said, voice still eerily calm.

Minako looked like she'd about to say something, but one of her hands jerked up a bit more, pointed at Akihiko and Aigis. They stopped midway in their rush to back up Minako, but looked like they were going to surge forward again anyway.

"Zen! What are you doing?!' Rei cried suddenly. She gave his cloak a yank. "You can't do that to our friends."

Zen lowered the crossbow immediately, looking down at the girl. "She said-"

"She meant you need to rest!" she shook her head and tsked the boy. 

Zen looked back to Minako, who had slowly lowered her arms, "My apologies."

Minako blew out a breath, then tossed a hand up, "No problem."

An uneasy silence lowered over the group which wasn't broken up until Minako spoke again.

"I think once we get a little bit further, it's time for a real break," she glanced over to Mitsuru. "This thing's way bigger than we thought; there's no way we can get it done at once."

Mitsuru nodded, "I'm afraid you're right."

  


*.*.* 

  
Minako was yawning a bit when Fuuka found her. She was sitting on a large windowsill in the hall near the stairs to the roof. Aigis was standing at her side, holding a bag of cotton candy she was examining.

Fuuka approached, making the kettlecorn in the paper cup she'd bought rattle a bit. Minako patted the spot next to her on the sill. Once she hopped up and was settled, the other girl silently held up an extra toothpick. 

Accepting it, Fuuka took one of the takoyaki and started eating. They were good, not quite as good as the stand she frequented in Port Island, but still good. She offered her cup of kettle corn, which Minako took some of.

"Are you fatigued as well?" Aigis asked, breaking the calm silence between them.

"Yes, having Lucia called for that long is exhausting. Even when I'm in the Velvet Room," she answered.

Minako nodded with a hum, then raised her hand and waved it beckoningly. Fuuka looked over to see Yukari coming their way. She stopped, then leaned back a bit when Minako took obvious interest in the paper cone she was holding.

"Are those... waffle fries?" Minako asked. Yukari sighed with a nod and held out the cone. The other girl grinned and took one, then held out her container of takoyaki.

They all started eating from each other's food, occasionally dipping into Aigis' cotton candy when she offered it. Fuuka noticed the quiet between them; comfortable, if not exhausted.

"I think," Minako said after a while. "I'm going to see if Elizabeth will let us sleep in the nurse's station.

"How come?" Yukari asked once she'd swallowed the kettle corn she'd been chewing. 

"We still don't know what the deal with the students walking around here is," their leader said, dropping her voice down a bit as she did. "Fuuka was saying before they don't feel exactly like shadows."

Fuuka nodded when Yukari glanced her way. "They're not human though. I think anyway; it's hard to figure out."

"I have two theories," Aigis spoke up, getting the girls' attention. "They are either an illusion, like the school itself. Or they are the end result of humans who have been trapped here for too long."

Fuuka started at that; what a horrible thought.

"Like how Zen and Rei can't remember anything? You think they'll end up like this if we don't find a way out?" Yukari asked, her tone a bit sick.

"I am unsure," Aigis said, "But perhaps this is the fate of those trapped here without a persona."

They were silent for a long stretch, all with grim looks on their faces. Eventually Minako spoke up again. "Whatever they are, we can't be certain if we're safe letting our guards down enough to sleep. And no one's going back into the labyrinth without rest," her voice had turned firm, as if she expected any of them to argue. Fuuka certainly wasn't going to, however.

"Anyway," Minako continued. "That's why I'm going to talk to Elizabeth. We can't trust these students or whatever they are, but we can trust her."

"Are you sure about that?" Yukari asked, frowning. "She and Theo seem... odd."

"I'm certain," Minako sounded amused. "You just need to get used to them. They're the ones who help me with my personas."

"About that..." Fuuka lowered the waffle fry she'd been about to eat. "I noticed you were using Orpheus again."

"You have only used Orpheus since we entered the labyrinth," Aigis added.

Minako looked a surprised at the topic. She finished chewing the bite in her mouth and swallowed. "Noticed that, huh?"

"Is something wrong?" Yukari already sounded worried as she asked.

The girl let out a long sigh. "I... don't seem to be able to use anything else."

Yukari glanced out at the students walking by them with a sick expression. "You don't think this place is going to take our powers from us, do you? Maybe Zen and Rei had personas at some point too?"

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves," Minako said, though she sounded a little more worried. "Maybe I should go talk to Theo and Elizabeth..."

  


*.*.* 

  
"Please have a seat," Elizabeth's prim voice requested. She'd been speaking to Minako, but she glanced to where Yukari, Fuuka and Aigis were standing. "You too, please," she said to Yukari in particular.

Minako plunked down on the wide blue seat that had been offered. Yukari joined her, looking a little nervous. Before she could reassure the other girl, Theo stepped forward, handing a deck of cards to Elizabeth.

"Now," the attendant said as she started shuffling, "This isn't usually my place. But since we have no alternative," she finished shuffling, then spread the tarot cards face down on the table.

She looked over the cards, then reached for the card closest to Minako. 

"Hm," Elizabeth hummed, Theo looked over her shoulder and frowned.

"What is it?" Minako asked. Elizabeth flipped the card to show her.

"That's Tower, right?" Yukari asked. "What does it mean?"

"Don't remember from summer classes?" Minako said, feeling a grimace crawl over her face. "Tower's not good."

"There are many ways to interpret the cards," Elizabeth interjected. "One card has many meanings. But what is significant is that it wasn't the Fool."

"The Fool is Minako's arcana?" Fuuka asked.

Elizabeth nodded, "It represents infinite possibilities, she has the Wild Card ability as well... but it seems it has been altered."

"That's going to change how the team works..." Fuuka was starting to sound as apprehensive as Minako was feeling.

"It's not gone," Theo said, "And I suspect this strange place is causing this issue. Once you're back to your world, I feel her abilities will return to normal."

That was a relief. Minako watched as Elizabeth selected the card closest to Yukari. It was the Fool.

"Did... I get her power?" Yukari sounded nervous. "No way, right?"

Neither attendant answered. They looked at each other, then back to the cards. "The Wild Card does represent unlimited possibilities," Theo spoke up.

"I never suspected this," Elizabeth clapped her hands together and looked at Minako. "The Wild Card ability is benefiting your team as well as you."

"They can all use multiple personas?" 

Elizabeth didn't answer right away, instead she moved forward and put her still-gloved hand to Minako's forehead. "Just as I suspected. The Wild Card's alteration has made you able to call sub personas."

"Sub... personas?" Fuuka asked, "She can summon two at a time?"

All the present members of SEES eyes locked on Minako at that. She felt her neck grow warm; during the summer she had tried summoning two personas at the same time. The fusion spell had... less than intended results.

"Not quite the same as a regular persona," Theo answered, mercifully breaking up her thoughts. "A sub-persona would never be able to reach their true potential."

"And," Elizabeth moved from Minako to put the back of her hand to Yukari's forehead, "I believe your friends will be able to use them as well."

That was surprising. Minako shook her head, "Will they be able to fuse them as well?"

"I don't think so," Theo shook his head. "The ability it still tied to you; you'll have to manage everyone's sub persona."

"We should tell the others," Fuuka said, sounding awed.

  


*.*.* 

  
The labyrinth and it's shadows were sometimes more annoying than dangerous. Akihiko was itching to just break ranks and fight the damn playing card FOE.

That probably had to do with his sub-persona. Minako and Fuuka had gathered everyone to announce what they'd found out in the Velvet Room. Now Akihiko had more abilities than before and he was itching to try them out.

Still, he wasn't about to leave the team to try on his own. Especially when things weren't going as well as they could.

Minako was obviously getting frustrated with the room they were in; there were three FOEs hopping around, but they were keeping to a pattern. She was trying to get them all clear of the shadows, but their patterns overlapped and wound up sending them backtracking a few times now.

Currently Minako was watching the shadows hop back and forth with a grimace. She had asked Mitsuru for help, and the two girls were planning their next step.

"Junpei," the girl huffed a moment later. "Get in on this."

"What? How the hell am I going to do any better than you two?" he huffed as he approached them.

"Because this is some video game bullshit logic," the field leader grumbled. "And I'm having a shit time of it."

"We may be well-served taking a break," Mitsuru said in a sigh. 

"No. I want to get this done," Minako said, grimace getting worse. The three of them started going over a plan, and Akihiko noticed Shinji walk up to him.

"I'm starting to think we should just fight the stupid things," he grumbled.

"I've been saying that the whole time," Akihiko replied.

"Yeah, but you're a moron so no one was listening."

Akihiko felt his hands ball up into fists. He only managed to keep from hollering at the other boy because they were still in an area filled with shadows. But that didn't stop him from muttering out a reply, "You just said it was a good idea. Guess you're a moron then."

"Guess so," the taller of the two replied, letting out a sigh. He glanced over to Akihiko and shook his head. "Minako's about to lose it."

"I don't blame her," Akihiko said as his eyes wandered back her way. It looked like she, Mitsuru and Junpei were finishing their plans.

A few minutes later Akihiko and Shinjiro were sneaking around a corner after Minako sent them along. They had been going in pairs on the girl's signal. Aigis and Minako were the only ones...

"Oh son of a bitch," Akihiko jerked his head back the way he'd come. Minako and Aigis had been cut off by the FOE they had been avoiding. She'd have to wait for it-

"Akihiko! Shinjiro!" the girl called as she readied her naginata.

"Looks like she gives up," Shinji said as he hefted his axe over his shoulder.

"It's about time" Akihiko replied, hands balling into fists gleefully as they ran back to aid the other two. Minako already summoned her persona as Aigis peppered the FOE with bullets. It didn't even see him and Shinji coming.

Fuuka's warning to run away only seemed to get Akihiko's blood pumping harder, and he threw himself fists-first into the creature.

  


*.*.* 

  
Mitsuru found Elizabeth wrapping Minako's arm when she entered the nurse's station. It appeared she was using far too much gauze to wrap the wound the girl had received during the fight with the FOE, but Minako didn't stop her.

"I suspect you're here about the FOE," Minako said once she noticed Mitsuru.

"I am."

"And I suspect you're not happy I decided to fight the thing when Fuuka warned us against it, right?"

"I am not."

Minako was quiet a moment, then a tiny smile spread over her face, "But I suspect you can't deny the boost it had for morale."

"..." Mitsuru thought about it for a moment. Akihiko and Aragaki certainly seemed pleased with how things had gone. And by clearing the way they were able to open an easier path to get back to when they next went into the labyrinth. 

"I suppose, but-"

Minako held up her free hand, "It wasn't a good idea. I'll at least plan out these things better in the future."

Mitsuru nodded. She couldn't deny these occasional tests of their abilities were a good means to push the team to excel, but she was glad to hear Minako tempering her impulses. Or at least planning to.

"These fights are also great sources of injuries," Elizabeth said as she finished winding the last of the entire roll of gauze around Minako. The girl hopped off the table she'd been sitting on when the Velvet Room attendant went for another.

Mitsuru was starting to suspect Elizabeth had no idea how to treat human injuries.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for ready, I hope you enjoyed!

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed! 
> 
> Updates won't be scheduled, but they'll trickle along at a regular pace I'm sure. This is my cool-down hobby and it seems like I always need to cool down~


End file.
